CREATE holds grand reopening and ribbon cutting at new location

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — CREATE Community Studios recently celebrated a grand reopening and ribbon cutting at its new Saratoga Springs location.

Founded in 2017, CREATE has two locations in Schenectady and Saratoga Springs. The Saratoga spot first opened on Broadway, then moved in with the Living Resources Art Gallery and shared space. Now it’s Living Resources’ next door neighbor, with its own independent space.

“I love the amount of light in here, and I love how it’s all our own space – we can hang up anything we want,” said CREATE Executive Director Heather Hutchison.

CREATE Community Studios is a nonprofit organization dedicated to “providing a space where the benefits of art-making impact both the individual and the community as a whole.” The company believes that art should be accessible to everyone, and they make it their mission to do just that. They offer a variety of low-cost workshops, open studio hours where a donation of $5 is requested only if you can afford it, and lots of outreach programs. They’re not an art therapy group, and unlike traditional studios they don’t focus on the product. Instead, CREATE encourages people of all ages and abilities to enjoy the process of creating, “using art as an expressive medium to increase general well-being.”

At the recent grand reopening and ribbon-cutting, Hutchison and Saratoga site director Julianne Lewis were congratulated by Mayor Ron Kim, State Sen. Daphne Jordan, and representatives for Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner and the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce.

“Congratulations on this new space,” Jordan said, giving Hutchison and Lewis a citation. “I’m really excited to hear about all the populations you serve. Art is a great way to relieve stress.”

CREATE does about 50% of its work in the studio, with open hours and workshops taught by a combination of staff and guest artists, and 50% in outreach programs. They use art-making programs in local schools and at other nonprofit organizations such as Boys & Girls Clubs, Saratoga Pride, and Saratoga Bridges, and for people including veterans and domestic violence survivors.

Kim gave CREATE a city proclamation, which stated “throughout our city’s history, not-for-profit businesses have played a large part in the development of our economy and our identity.”

Assemblywoman Woerner’s representative gave a citation that proclaimed “creation is a journey as much as a destination, and a creative journey makes room for understanding, communication, and exploration with one’s self and with others.”

As if the city itself was welcoming CREATE into its new space, once the ribbon was cut a breeze stirred up and blew a shower of petals down from the flowering tree in front of the studio, creating a rain of “natural confetti.”

For more information about CREATE Community Studio’s workshops and events, visit their website at https://createcommunitystudios.org/ or follow “createcommunitystudios” on Instagram and Facebook.